grass for prob area

dancerdeb(23)April 10, 2011

Small backyard area for grass - perimeter plantings, large patio; coastal L A; the St Augustine grass turns into mud because it's partially in shade in winter, although our temps don't drop out out of the 40's. Not a fan of the 2 season lawn routine. Kikuyu grass sounds interesting - invasive, so what, this lawn is very isolated...We like to sit on the grass, sunbathe, etc, so that eliminates natives you can't step on.

I don't know how Kikuyu grass responds to winter shade in Louisiana, but it certainly does better here in the San Francisco Bay Area as a full sun turf. It tends to stay pretty much green and full here in full sun, even though we do flirt with freezing temps briefly in winter.

I might suggest using dwarf Mondo Grass as a lawn substitute, if it doesn't have to accommodate but occasional traffic. It holds up really well to winter shade and wet soils locally, but is slow to fill in.